Uriankhai in the context of Kara Del

Tannu Uriankhai (Tuvan: Таңды Урянхай, [taŋˈdɤ urʲanˈχaj]; Mongolian: Тагна Урианхай, romanized: Tagna Urianhai, [ˈtʰaɢəɴ ʊrʲæŋˈχæɪ̯]; simplified Chinese: 唐努乌梁海; traditional Chinese: 唐努烏梁海; pinyin: Tángnǔ Wūliánghǎi) was a historical region of the Mongol Empire, its principal successor, the Yuan dynasty, and later the Qing dynasty. The territory of Tannu Uriankhai largely corresponds to the modern-day Tuva Republic of the Russian Federation, neighboring areas in Russia, and a small part of the modern state of Mongolia.

Tannu designates the Tannu-ola Mountains in the region, and Uriankhai was the Mongolian name for the Tuvans (and accordingly their realm), which meant "the people living in the woods" (Chinese: 林中百姓; pinyin: Línzhōng Bǎixìng).

The Uryankhay Republic (Chinese: 烏梁海共和國; pinyin: Wū liáng hǎi gònghéguó; Tuvan: Урянхай) was a nominally independent state that broke away from the Qing dynasty of China during the Xinhai Revolution. It was proclaimed as a republic in 1911 by the Tuvan separatist movement and was encouraged by the Russian Empire. On 1 December 1911, Outer Mongolia declared independence from Qing China. Throughout the rest of December, bands of Uriankhai began to plunder and burn Chinese-owned shops.

Uriankhai nobles were divided on their course of political action. The Uriankhai governor (amban-Noyon), Oyun Kombu-Dorzhu, advocated becoming a protectorate of Russia, hoping that the Russians would appoint him Governor of Uriankhai. However, Balzhin'nima and Toqamid, the noyans (Mongolian for "mandarin") of two other kozhuuns (Tuvan for "banner") preferred to submit to the new Outer Mongolian state under the theocratic rule of Buddhist spiritual leader Jebstundamba Khutukhtu of Urga.Undeterred, Kombu-Dorzhu sent a petition to the Russian Tsar's Frontier Superintendent at Usinsk, stating that he had been chosen as leader of an independent Tannu Uriankhai state. He asked for protection and proposed that Russian troops be sent immediately into the country to prevent China from restoring its rule over the region. There was no reply – three months earlier, the Tsarist Council of Ministers had decided on a policy of cautious gradual absorption of Uriankhai by encouraging Russian influence. The Council feared that precipitate action by Russia might provoke China. Tsar Nicholas II ordered Russian troops into the Uryankhay Republic in 1912, under the pretext that Russian migrants were allegedly attacked.

The Tuvans (from Russian тувинцы tuvincy) or Tyvans (from Tuvan тывалар tyvalar) are a Turkic ethnic group indigenous to Siberia that live in Tuva, Mongolia, and China. They speak the Tuvan language, a Siberian Turkic language. In Mongolia, they are regarded as one of the Uriankhai peoples. In China, they are considered Mongols, even though Tuvans are Turkic, not Mongolic.

Tuvans have historically been livestock-herding nomads, tending to herds of goats, sheep, camels, reindeer, cattle, and yaks for the past thousands of years (This is, in fact, evident in the Tuvan folk song "Tooruktug Dolgai Tangdym"). They have traditionally lived in yurts covered by felt or chums, layered with birch bark or hide that they relocate seasonally as they move to newer pastures. Traditionally, the Tuvans were divided into nine regions called khoshuun, namely the Tozhu, Salchak, Oyunnar, Khemchik, Khaasuut, Shalyk, Nibazy, Daavan and Choodu, and Beezi. The first four were ruled by Uriankhai Mongol princes, while the rest were administered by Borjigin Mongol princes.

The Altai Uriankhai (Mongolian: Алтайн Урианхай; simplified Chinese: 阿尔泰乌梁海; traditional Chinese: 阿爾泰烏梁海) refers to a Mongol tribe around the Altai Mountains that was organized by the Qing dynasty. They now form a subgroup in western Mongolia and eastern Xinjiang.

The Uriankhai people first appeared in the 7th century as one of the people in Mongolia (Legend of the Erkune kun). The Mongolian term Uriankhai had been applied to all Samoyedic, Turkic, and Mongolic peoples to the north-west of Mongolia in the 17th century. The Uriyangkhai, in this sense, were first subjugated by the Khotgoid, the Khalkha, and then by the Dzungars.